TCEB: Bureau wins plaudits for calming MICE market jitters

Published: August 2009

ThaiAsiaToday.com recently got the opportunity to chat with Supawan Teerarat (see photo, below), exhibitions director and acting president of the Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), a vitally important organization tasked with supporting development of the highly lucrative MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) market in the kingdom, and reporting directly to the Prime Minister's Office.

ThaiAsiaToday.com: Could you please give our readers a quick summary of how TCEB has been dealing with the economic and political situation in the kingdom?

Supawan Teerarat (ST): Of course we have felt effects from the global economic and financial crisis, as well as the political situation in the country.

We estimate that the number of visitors (to the kingdom) has dropped about 20%. I think this is largely an effect of the global financial crisis. It doesn't only apply to

Thailand, I think the percentage I mention should apply to all countries right now.

ThaiAsiaToday.com: Some of our readers may not be particularly familiar with the term MICE market, so perhaps you could provide some background for them in terms of TCEB's role?

ST: Yes, we use the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) label in Asia, but in other regions, other terms are sometimes applied, such as Business Events.

In Thailand, we are certainly very lucky to have the bureau (TCEB). It is a government body that is fully in charge of the MICE market segment and fully understands the important significance of this sector.

Firstly, it should be noted that the person that comes to Thailand for a MICE event is totally different from a regular tourist. Through MICE events, it is really the business traveler who is using the platform of a corporate meeting or conference, or even business people who participate in exhibitions or visitors to such exhibitions, who are all 'well qualified' travelers to Thailand. That's why, in fact, the TECB was first established – to service these visitors.

ThaiAsiaToday.com: When was the bureau established?

ST: It was set up six years ago as the bureau responsible for attracting more business events to Thailand and win more international meetings and conferences, along with promoting the brand of Thailand as the best possible choice of destination among organizers of MICE events.

BS: Would I be correct in saying you're focused on raising awareness?

ST: We do a lot on education, security standards and have even been active in the establishment of standard for so-called 'green meetings', so from that point of view, yes, we do look to raise awareness.

BS: Could you explain in a bit more detail for our readers how someone involved in a MICE event differs from a 'regular' tourist?

ST: Yes, well I think you can say that these are very niche markets.

Firstly, it should be noted that while a regular tourist might spend about 4,000-8,000 baht (US$117-234) per day, our 'qualified' travelers (visitors to MICE events) often spend up to 15,000-20,000 baht per day since they are here on business. Typically, these people don't spend on a personal level, rather, it's their company that pays. And their experience will be steered by the activities they are joining during their stay.

For example, if they are part of a group attending corporate meetings, like those typically organized by large Information Technology (IT) firms, if they choose to hold the event in Bangkok, there are likely to be some leisure activities tied in with the main focus of their stay.

Since Thailand is now well known as one of the world's leading tourist destination, when it comes to incentives, the visitor is largely going to focus on leisure. They may also choose to have a slightly different package, for example, which takes in a few other parts of the country.

Another significant group is those who are attending conferences and exhibitions. Folks attending conventions, don't only expect to attend the meetings, and will likely have other activities tied in, too, either pre- or post-event.

For exhibitions – where buyers and sellers meet and where sellers can showcase their goods or services – a new trend has emerged over recent years. In the past, those involved tended to only come for the exhibition, but more recently we've seen that exhibitors and visitors may choose to extend their trip around the event to allow for more leisure time, such as shopping, during the trip. Through research, we have seen that this is definitely a growing trend.

BS: It seems as though there is a large push to stimulate domestic tourism – how does that fit in with your remit?

ST: Well, the main objective of our mission is to attract international travelers and encourage them to come to Thailand. However, during the recent crisis, certainly the number of international visitors was clearly down sharply, and rather than just wait for this return, the government took the initiative of trying to encourage more Thais to travel within the kingdom rather than go abroad.

This 'Domestic MICE' campaign involves trying to encourage Thai organizations, beginning with government bodies but then moving on to corporations, to hold their events in the kingdom rather than overseas.

Essentially, when it comes to the domestic MICE market, we decided to break it down into 32 sub groupings – each with the possibility of a special package, joining hand in hand with numerous associations, federations and tourism groups, along with government support for this campaign. Nevertheless, it should be stated that for our organization, it is the international aspect that is our main focus.

BS: How have these various crises experienced over the last few years affected the MICE market recently and what has TCEB been doing to address this situation?

ST: Well, last year (2008) the MICE market as a whole managed to generate 55 billion baht in income from 600,000 participants. While it is extremely difficult to assess this year's situation, particularly in light of the Influenza A (H1N1) outbreak, we expect that about 500,000 visitors will attend MICE events in the kingdom, which is likely to generate in the region of 40 billion baht.

BS: What kind of marketing initiatives are you involved in?

ST: We conduct a good deal of international marketing, participating in major events relating to the MICE market, as well as organizing roadshows, in tandem with the Board of Investment (BOI) and the Department of Export Promotion (DEP). This is to provide foreigners with a clearer picture and promote greater confidence in the kingdom in terms of travel.

It is not just a case of promoting our 'quick decision' campaign, but also to reassure our target markets that Thailand is once again a peaceful country where we more than welcome business travelers to return and do business. The 'quick win' aspect is aimed at encouraging those can understand how the situation has evolved to feel comfortable with holding their events in the kingdom. It's fair to say that we have been focusing on 'short haul', which means promoting Asia as a destination over other continents.

BS: Where are a lot of your marketing efforts targeted?

ST: Due to the importance of 'new media', where we once might have bought more ads in trade magazines and so on, now we are conducting a lot of campaigns online, using social media and networking, for example.

BS: Can you please tell our readers a bit more about your Green Meetings initiative?

ST: By definition, climate change and global warming is an international issue. It's not only the government, but virtually all business sectors that are now working towards encompassing environmentally friendly initiatives within their activities.

In the past, I have to say that the MICE industry created an awful lot of waste, particularly within the exhibitions sub-sector. Once an event was finished, typically a lot of the displays were just discarded or even thrown away. So one of our missions as a partner in developing the idea of Green Meetings has been to work as a partner in promoting new ways to deal with some of these wasteful practices. This may involve organizing a brainstorming session, for example, with an organizer or venue.

The Green Meetings guidelines help to reduce the incidence of waste within these business sectors, or ensure that more of it is recyclable. This has largely focused on Bangkok, but we are dedicated to spreading the message into the provinces.

We have already worked with various stakeholders in the preparation of the guidelines and we are now looking at sharing them among small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). It's amazing how many ways you can contribute – in some ways you are doing so by being solely online.

BS: That's good to know! What other methods do you use to spread your message further afield (overseas)?

ST: Since it would be far too costly to set up specific offices overseas, we tend to appoint representative companies, essentially marketing companies, that obviously tend to be located in places we consider to be major target markets. In Asia, we have them in China, India, Malaysia and Vietnam, for example, while in Europe the main ones are located in UK (London), Germany and Spain. This set up allows our representatives to establish a more direct link with customers or potential customers.

BS: Could you provide a few more specifics regarding TCEB's efforts towards developing venues in other parts of the country?

ST: Yes, we're looking at promoting events in some 'Unseen' parts of Thailand in a variety of venues, too, such as Khon Kaen University (in the northeastern province of Khon Kaen), as well as Nakhon Sri Thammarat (in the South), Pattaya and Phuket.

BS: How do you provide support directly to your various stakeholders?

ST: Both by means of financial and non-financial support.

Right now we are offering some direct financial initiatives, for example, to organizers in the form of subsidies. This may be based on the number of persons attending an event, for example. The $100 per head initiative, for example, allows a trade partners to receive up to $100 per head, if bringing along an extra 50 people to an event. On top of that, there is an 'extra night, extra smile' promotion, which encourages participants at events in the kingdom to extend their stay either side of their main function.

BS: Can you let our readers know roughly when you see things bouncing back when it comes to the MICE market?

ST: We expect the industry to have fully recovered by the fourth quarter (Q4) of

2010. Statistics reveal that the number of visitors to MICE events worldwide have actually fallen by between 10-20% since the global economic downturn began to have a major impact.

BS: And what, in your opinion, are the main factors that are already leading many businesses to reconsider the kingdom again as a venue for their MICE events.

ST: They remain more or less the same, starting with a good deal of recognition for Thailand's value for money (VFM). The other thing organizers and visitors still recognize is the kingdom's hospitality, or indeed 'Thainess', which is certainly unique in the service sector.

Thailand is a major manufacturing base on a practical level, but also remains a popular destination due to its cultural values. The airport is one of the busiest in the region, while the country also now boasts a comprehensive transport infrastructure. The many hotels and restaurants mean that there are entry points no matter what your budget.

The cultural aspect will always make Thailand an attractive destination, and we would like to reassure people that the kingdom is a peaceful country, where you will enjoy a warm welcome.

We have financial and non-financial initiatives aimed at organizers and visitors, so really we should be your first port of call when looking to organize a MICE-related event in Thailand.

BS: Thank you very much and all the very best with your efforts.

ST: You're welcome!